Blog Archives

Kathy’s Law Passed – Restraining Orders to be Strengthened with GPS Tracking

San Diego’s state assembly committee has passed a bill that would place GPS tracking devices on domestic violence offenders. The bill is named for Kathy Scharbarth, who was strangled outside her home last year by an ex-boyfriend a few days after she obtained a restraining order against him. Had the restraining order been enforced and monitored via a GPS tracker, Kathy would still be alive today. This bill also orders the tracked offender to pay all GPS service fees. …

A Florida teen was arrested for breaking into and burglarizing a home while the owners were away. The interesting part of this case is how the teen got arrested: he was identified after forgetting to logout of his MySpace account …

After a series of car break-ins in the Thomasville, GA area, Grant Carney and his wife finally decided to set up their trap to catch the thieves. Carney planted a phony purse in his truck that was stuffed full of paper, and an empty wallet with a single dollar sticking out as bait. There was also a sensor in the car, that when broken, would alert Grant of the break in and a motion detecting camera.

“So I’m looking out the window getting a description of him while my wife is on the phone with 911 and the whole time I see the flash going off in the truck,” laughed Carney.

Grant knew that once the thief got his picture taken, he would try to take the camera with him to avoid getting caught. This is why they chained the camera to the car, giving the police enough time to arrive there before he finally got it off.

“Right now we’re charging him with seven counts of entering autos. We have more we’ll probably tie him to soon,” said Carney.

All the vehicles investigators say Harper stole from were unlocked. A reminder to keep your car doors locked.

South African police are baffled by a “Robin Hood” style thief who robbed a mansion and redistributed the money he stole to the servants that work there. The thief first broke into the home and took a few articles of clothing. Then about two weeks later, he returned wearing those articles of clothing, and stole some expensive jewelry worth 50,000 rand (equivalent to about $6,320) and a firearm from the safe. What makes this thief’s break ins so unique is that he walks in calmly without hiding his face, directed the servants to tie themselves up, and made another one the residents show him around the home at gunpoint. This thief made sure that the servants would be protected from punishment when the homeowner found on that he or she was robbed. As “Robin Hood” was leaving, he asked the servants if they needed any money.

Police are investigating the crime as an inside job, for they suspect that the money given to the servants might have been a form of payment, or if it really is just a true-life Robin Hood. Either way, this is something they have never seen before.

“What kind of robber returns to the same house wearing clothes he stole there earlier – steals again without even covering his face and then gives away money in the end?… He was poised during the robbery, calmly walking into every room of the mansion. He was comfortable and un-agitated, unlike uncharacteristic of robbers in similar situations.” police spokesperson Captain Andre Venter told the BBC.